Policy: Management
Safety Policy Statement
Your health, safety, and welfare at work within the School of Infection & Immunity (Sii) are very important - we take this seriously and aspire to ensure for you a safe, secure and thus rewarding environment.
Your health, safety and welfare at work are protected by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 along with other regulations and approved codes of practice. The policy of the School of Infection & Immunity ensures that arrangements are in place at every level of operation to maintain a working environment where the health and physical safety of staff, students, visitors and other occupants of our School’s buildings are assured. These practices are compliant with the relevant statutes above.
Our policy covers all members of Sii. We note however that work ongoing in our school is located within several University and NHS buildings namely, the Sir Graeme Davis Building (Glasgow Biomedical Research Centre), Joseph Black Building and MRC-University of Glasgow CVR (located in Garscube campus buildings: Sir Michael Stoker Building, Henry Wellcome, Jarrett, Ian Botham, McRobert, and Urquhart). The school also has laboratory facilities within the McGregor Building, Western Infirmary along with clinical facilities at the Royal Infirmary and Gartnavel General Hospital. Staff at the Royal Infirmary and Gartnavel General Hospital are covered by CNORIS, a risk management scheme for the NHS Scotland.
Our policy supports and underpins University policy, which can be found in detail at the University of Glasgow Safety and Environmental Protection Services (SEPS). The school recognises that safety requirements enacted by law are set to a minimum standard. For this reason, the school is committed to constantly reviewing safety standards and, as far as resources permit, to continually improve these standards to thereby exceed base requirements. Our policy will further complement the university’s policy by describing the organisational structure for safety in the school and by indicating potential hazards and precautions required to prevent accidents and ill-health.
To achieve successful management of health and safety at work, every member of staff within the school must actively participate to ensure that they behave in a manner that will not adversely affect the welfare of colleagues. The implementation of this policy is carried out through the Head of School who has delegated responsibility through the Head of College and ultimately the University Court.
All staff, students and registered visitors are required to observe the health and safety rules and standards and adhere to the Sii Health and Safety Policy Statement. Deliberate deviation from established health and safety rules and standards may result in disciplinary action. This policy statement will be reviewed by the safety committee of the School of Infection & Immunity at least annually.
Policy objectives:
- To provide safety guidance for best working practices
• To enhance UofG safety policy with details specific to activities within the School
• To ensure training needs are recognised and applied to ensure a safe working environment
To the extent that any individual has control over a University resource, he or she must also accept responsibility for this aspect of its performance. Thus, every member of staff who manages or directly supervises the work of others is responsible for their health and safety. They must make sure that colleagues, students and visitors understand what they must do to ensure their own safety and the safety of others.
Signed Safety Policy Statement (2 June 2024)
This policy supports and underpins University of Glasgow policy, which can be found in detail at Safety and Environmental Protection Services (SEPS).
School Safety Committee
|
Name |
Role/Area |
|
Phone |
Room number |
|
Tansy Hammarton |
Committee Chair/GM |
0141 330 6766 |
Room B625, Level 6, SGDB |
|
|
Susan Gannon |
Safety Co-ordinator, Technical & Building Manager (SGDB) |
|
0141 330 7147 |
Room B5/14, Level 5, SGDB |
|
Caroline O'Connell |
Safety Co-ordinator, Building and Technical Manager, SGDB |
Caroline.Clucas@glasgow.ac.uk | 0141 330 8147 | Room B5/14, Level 5, SGDB |
|
Aude Aumeunier |
Biological Safety Manager, CVR |
aude.aumeunier@glasgow.ac.uk | 0141 330 3438 | CVR |
|
Sharon Burns |
Safety Officer, CVR |
Sharon.Burns@glasgow.ac.uk | 0141 330 6897 | Room 204, SMSB |
|
Gillian Parker |
CL3 Manager, SGDB |
0141 330 8282 |
Room B6/21, Level 6, SGDB |
|
|
Joyce Mitchell |
CL3 Operations Manager, CVR |
0141 330 2927 |
SMSB |
|
|
Richard McCulloch |
Parasitology/SAPO |
0141 330 6201 |
Room B6/18, Level 6, SGDB |
|
|
Andrew Boyd |
Building and Technical Technician, SGDB |
0141 330 7573 |
Room B Level 4, SGDB |
|
|
Leandro Lemgruber Soares |
College Research Facilities |
0141 330 4010 |
Level 1, BHF |
|
|
Neil Basu |
Immunology/Clinical |
0141 330 1718 |
Room B Level SGDB |
|
|
Angela Elliot |
MVLS Biological Safety Manager |
0141 330 3155 |
|
|
|
Arianne Babina |
Bacteriology |
0141 330 6185 |
Room B2/23 Level 2 SGDB |
Role of the Safety Committee
The safety committee will provide guidance and advise on health and safety issues within the School, namely, to address concerns and to monitor general compliance with health and safety regulations. The committee will meet approximately three times a year to discuss and address matters of concern and to update the policy if necessary. Safety audits will be carried out at least once a year to ensure all areas of the Institute remain safe environments to work in and to provide help and advise on any improvements that may be required.
The Chair of the Health and Safety Committee maintains communication with the Head of School, to whom issues requiring higher management decisions will be reported. The School’s Executive oversees the development and efficacy of mechanisms for the implementation of safety policy by ensuring that policy proposals submitted by the Safety Committee are properly considered and that accepted proposals are supported by adequate resources.
Safety issues should be reported to the Chair of the Sii Safety Committee, Dr Tansy Hammarton (tansy.hammarton@glasgow.ac.uk), or in her absence, the safety coordinators for SGDB: Dr Susan Gannon (susan.gannon@glasgow.ac.uk) or Dr Caroline O’Connell (caroline.clucas@glasgow.ac.uk), or for CVR: Aude Aumeunier (Aude.Aumeunier@glasgow.ac.uk) or Sharon Burns (sharon.burns@glasgow.ac.uk).
Role of the Safety Coordinator
The role of the Safety Coordinator is to assist the Head of School, or Service, to discharge their responsibilities for management of health and safety, including environmental protection matters. Duties will normally be delegated by the Head of Unit and will normally include the following:
Assist the Head of Unit to:
- Identify the legal requirements and University or College policy affecting the work of the unit and assist in devising suitable management systems to enable compliance with these.
- Develop systems and arrangements to ensure that risk assessments are conducted, recorded and reviewed and that any risks so identified are adequately controlled.
- Prepare documented procedures and arrangements for the management of health and safety and environmental protection within the unit.
- Develop communication strategies to ensure that all staff clearly understand their individual safety responsibilities both as individuals and with regard to any supervisory or managerial role that they may hold.
- Develop arrangements to ensure that all new staff receive a safety induction into the unit and are made aware of all precautions and procedures applicable to the job and of emergency procedures.
- Develop arrangements to ensure that staff, students and visitors are provided with adequate information about the risks they may face and about any action they need to take to prevent injury or ill health.
- Establish procedures to periodically inspect all equipment managed by the unit and to maintain this in a safe condition, whether by in-house staff or by specialist contractor and to identify and report safety defects in the workplace environment to Estates where the are responsible for maintenance of the item.
- Ensure that systems are in place to record, investigate and report on any accidents and incidents that occur.
- Develop systems for periodic inspection and auditing of local safety arrangements and for submission of reports to appropriate local managers and local safety committees.
- Develop and establish suitable local emergency procedures.
- Attend and support the work of the local health and safety committee(s), where applicable.
Note that although the Safety Coordinator is expected to develop arrangements and systems and to monitor these, it remains the responsibility of line managers and supervisors to apply these arrangements, including preparation of risk assessments and implementation of control measures.
Role of the Academic Lead
Academic Leads are responsible for the health and safety of all staff and students under their management control. They must ensure that:
- A suitable and sufficient risk assessment is carried out for all their activities involving biological material and that the assessments and/or protocols are assessed appropriately as per the University Risk Assessment Policy.
- These risk assessments are kept up to date and reviewed regularly as described in the Risk Assessment Policy.
- Workers in their charge receive appropriate information, instruction, mandatory and other training and supervision both in specific techniques and in the principles of good laboratory practice and safety, including hazardous waste disposal and emergency procedures applicable to the work. Records of this training must be maintained.
- Any necessary health screening or surveillance is provided (where identified as required by risk assessment) for those involved in, or affected by, the activity.
- Records are maintained of all those staff and students conducting these activities.
- All accidents and incidents are reported to the area management and SEPS via the online incident reporting system.
- Appropriate licenses are in place for all aspects of their biological work including import permit where relevant.
Role of Fire Safety Coordinator
- Complete the FSC training course provided by SEPS fire safety team.
- Monitor building escape routes arranging for any obstruction of routes or
- accumulation of combustible materials to be rectified locally or where this is
not possible, reported to Facilities Service and SEPS.
- Support the formal checks carried out by Facilities Services by reporting any
fault indicators seen on the fire alarm panel or any defect in any fire
protection provision such as emergency lighting, signage or fire-fighting
equipment.
- Ensure that fire incidents are reported to the SEPS.
- Ensure that at least two fire drills per annum are conducted. These should be
arranged in consultation with Facilities Services. SEPS can provide additional
advice or support
- Co-ordinate the activities of the local fire warden team where such
arrangements are in place.
- In conjunction with Security, Facilities Services and SEPS, assist in the
development of appropriate arrangements for assisting the evacuation of
sensory or mobility impaired occupants.
- In collaboration with other staff within the building, ensure that adequate
emergency information is available on the presence and location of
hazardous materials and processes within the building where these may pose
a particular risk to emergency services. (Information on this is formally sought
periodically by SEPS and for higher risk areas and is likely to primarily apply
to buildings containing laboratories or workshops.)
- Ensure that a current copy of Fire Risk Assessment is held within the building
Fire Precautions Register and that any actions required of the service/
academic units occupying the building are brought to the attention of the
relevant senior managers.
- During a building evacuation, undertake fire warden duties to support the
evacuation, unless required to carry out other functions.
Role of Fire Warden
- Undertake the Fire Warden training course provided by SEPS fire safety
team.
- Be familiar with exit routes from the building in which they normally work.
Draw the attention of the FSC, Facilities Duty Manager or Head of Unit to any
deficiency or obstruction on these routes.
DURING A FIRE DRILL OR ALARM ACTIVATION, SO FAR AS THEIR OWN
SAFETY ALLOWS:
- Instruct personnel in the area in which they find themselves to vacate the
building pausing only to make any equipment safe.
- Guide occupants along exit routes and help those whose routes are
obstructed to find alternative routes.
Provide support to those requiring assisted evacuation, helping them to reach
either an evacuation lift (if present) or stairway waiting areas and to use
emergency communications systems provided, SafeZone or mobile phone, or
by verbal communication, to advise Security that assistance is required.
- On leaving the building, help to move building users from the vicinity of the
exits and towards assembly areas.
- Help to prevent building users from re-enter the building until so instructed by
a senior Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) Officer or by University
Security acting on SFRS advice. (Trained evacuation teams may enter to
provide assisted evacuation, if this is required.)
- Should any person refuse to co-operate with the Fire Warden, to warn such
persons and note the incident for reporting to the Head of Unit and to SEPS
Senior Fire Safety Adviser.
- Report the successful evacuation of their area of responsibility to the Security
team managing the incident.
- Report any difficulties experienced during the evacuation to the Security
team, Fire Safety Coordinator, or to SEPS.
Role of All Staff and Students
To the extent that any individual has control over a University resource, he or she must also accept responsibility for this aspect of its performance. All concerns over issues of safety should be brought to the attention of the floor coordinator or safety coordinator on each floor in the first instance. Anyone contravening implicit or explicit safety guidelines may be subject to University disciplinary proceedings and possible legal action.
Students are not subject to the same legal obligations as employees but they still have a certain level of legal responsibility. The University expects that postgraduate researchers who work independently will exercise due regard to those working around them and who may be affected by their work. Note: undergraduate students are NOT permitted to work without supervision by trained laboratory staff while carrying out project work.
Visitors are not subject to the same legal obligations as employees although they have duty to work safely. All visitors must report to Reception in the BHF building.
Visiting research workers must ensure that they are aware of, and comply with, the Sii Safety Regulations. Responsibility for the safe working of visitors resides with the person inviting the visitor. The Head of School, or other appropriate senior member of staff, should be made aware of the presence of visiting workers, the duration of their stay and the nature of their work.
This staff member will also be responsible for ensuring that the visitor is trained to the appropriate standard of safety before any experimental work commences. Out with normal hours, visitors must have specific permission to be in School buildings. Service engineers and contractors should only be given authorisation for access to laboratories by the designated person for that area who will ensure that all safety requirements are fulfilled.